My experience with an ayurvedic facial, plus learning about ayurvedic medicine and how it can help you feel amazing!
Hi beautiful people! Recently, I tried out an Ayurvedic Facial with Nina at MySelf Spa Boutique in Natick. I highly recommend trying out a treatment here. The prices are very affordable, and Nina runs the Spa in her home office which is a beautiful, pristine and relaxing space. Nina offers skin treatments, whole body treatments, and even natural eyelash lifts. I decided to get an ayurvedic facial with Nina for my first treatment, and it was lovely. The above photos are my skin after the facial, with no edits, and it definitely appears more radiant and glowy.
The other aspect of this experience that I loved was that after the facial, Nina gave me specific dietary and lifestyle recomemndations to implement to retain my health, inside and out. For example, she suggested a few herbs for me and some skincare items such as rose water, and a soothing skin balm by Banyan Botanicals to use on particularly dry and sensitive areas(to prevent my perioral dermatitis).
Nina relayed to me that I had a lot of fire energy running through my body, which actually contributes to the redness on my skin which I have dealt with for a while. It gets worse in the winter unfortunately because my skin gets more dry and irritated. To combat this, using things like rose water, manuka honey, and nourishing oils such as jojoba or rosehip oil are my go to’s.
Looking at the images above, Ayurvedic Medicine is super fascinating because it looks at your whole person and each person has an energy, or a “Dosha.” So for example I have a “Pitta” Dosha which means I have certain qualities that make up my person which are different than someone who has a Kapha or Vata energy.
People who believe in Ayurvedic medicine also believe in looking at the whole body as one system when trying to heal. The reason why I think it is useful is because it is based on the belief system that your health depends on your mind , your body, and your spirit, to all be in harmony with eachother. If one aspect is off, this will throw the other aspects out of whack.
According to Ayurvedic practice, in the body, Vata is the energy of movement, Pitta is the energy of digestion and Kapha is the energy that makes up the entire body structure. Vata is composed of Space and Air. Pitta is made up of Fire and Water. Kapha is formed of Earth and Water. If any of these are out of balance, it can produce negative emotions. Ayurveda is meant to not just treat surface level symptoms, but rather, naturally support your body to reduce your stress and help you live in balance. Here is more information if you want to read up on specific recommendations for each type.
To get started with Ayurveda in your own life, I recommend taking this Dosha quiz to figure out your Dosha type. You can then use the results from this quiz for dietaty and lifestyle recommendations. Alternatively, you can go see someone who is trained in Ayurvedic medicines and he/she will be able to anaylze your whole body to give you a personalized plan. Here is a directory to find a practicioner near you.
Overall, I think Ayurvedic medicine is a lovely method to incorporate in your own life to learn about yourself, and discover practical ways to support your own health internally. As you guys know, I truly believe that finding health is a matter of not just looking at the surface level symptoms but instead looking deeper within yourself to find the root of your problems. This leads to a lot of self-discovery, and often times, a lot of anguish and pain but it is worth it in the end. If you have any more questions, I’d love to hear from you. Thank you for reading!
Let me know what you think!